A battery cell has been proposed as a clean, efficient and environmentally responsible power source for electric vehicles and various other applications. One type of battery cell is known as the lithium-ion battery. The lithium-ion battery is rechargeable and can be formed into a wide variety of shapes and sizes so as to efficiently fill available space in electric vehicles. A plurality of individual lithium-ion battery cells can be provided in a battery cell module to provide an amount of power sufficient to operate electric vehicles.
FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a conventional battery module 1 including a plurality of battery cells 2 arranged in a stacked configuration and in electrical communication with an electrical device (e.g. battery disconnect unit (BDU) 4). Each of the battery cells 2 includes a cathode terminal 6 and an anode terminal 7. As shown, the terminals 6, 7 are centered on opposite ends of each of the battery cells 2. To connect the battery cells in a series electrical configuration, the battery cells are stacked with adjacent ones of the battery cells 2 in a flipped orientation relative to each other, wherein the cathode terminal 6 of one of the battery cells 2 is aligned with the anode terminal 7 of an adjacent one of the battery cells 2 and welded together to establish an electrical connection. One of the battery cells 2 disposed at each end of the stack is in electrical communication with the BDU 4 via a bus bar 8. Since one end of the stack is spaced further from the BDU 4 than the other end, at least one of the bus bars 8 must be relatively long. The bus bars 8 consistently generate heat during charging/discharging and are typically spaced from a cooling source.
It would be desirable to develop a battery module including a plurality of battery cells arranged in a stacked configuration, wherein a topology of the stacked battery cells minimizes a length of a bus bar used to connect the battery cells to an electrical device.